Ann-Elise Henzl

News Director

Ann-Elise Henzl

Ann-Elise Henzl became news director in September 2017.

Prior to her appointment, she worked in the WUWM Newsroom for more than 20 years. She served in a number of roles, including executive producer of the award-winning Project Milwaukee series, substitute news anchor for Morning Edition, and general assignment reporter.

Ann-Elise has been recognized for her work on numerous occasions, such as when she and a colleague shared the national Edward R. Murrow award from the Radio Television Digital News Association (for best use of sound in a story).

Ann-Elise has English and Mass Communication degrees from UW-Milwaukee, and attended Marquette University for two years.

When she's not at work, she often can be found at one of the area's dog parks, with her pal, Peabody.

Sheboygan County Circuit Judge Angela Sutkiewicz said Tuesday that Steven Avery should not get a new trial.

Avery was convicted of first-degree intentional homicide in the death of Teresa Halbach, whose remains were discovered on Avery's property in Manitowoc County. Halbach was a photographer who took photos for a magazine that listed cars and trucks for sale. In October 2005, she was assigned to drive to Avery's home to take photos of a vehicle, where prosecutors say Avery tortured and killed her.

One day after President Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress announced a tax overhaul plan, Vice President Mike Pence is hitting the road to promote the proposal. Pence is making stops in Michigan and Wisconsin Thursday.

The vice president will appear with Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker at Weldall Manufacturing in Waukesha. They'll tour the facility, then Pence will talk to people from the business community, families and local officials about why GOP leaders are pushing the tax overhaul.

The Wisconsin Elections Commission says Russians, who wanted to hack into the state voter registration database, appear to have mistakenly tried to get into state Department of Workforce Development records.

Last Friday, state elections officials said they were told by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security that the hackers targeted Wisconsin's election system, as well as systems in 20 other states. DHS said the hacking attempt was not successful.

This week, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker signed a bill that creates a record-setting $3 billion incentives package for the Taiwanese manufacturer Foxconn. The electronics giant plans to build a huge factory that will make LCD screens. The company says it will employ 3,000 people at first, eventually creating up to 13,000 jobs. The plant's likely location will be in Racine County.

After a full day of deliberations, which lasted until late Friday night, a jury in Waukesha County found that Anissa Weier was mentally ill when she and a friend attacked another girl, leaving her to die in the woods. All three girls were 12 years old at the time of the stabbing, three years ago. The victim was able to find help, and survived.

Weier and Morgan Geyser said they planned the stabbing in order to please the internet horror character Slender Man. Attorneys for Weier argued that she believed Slender Man would harm her family if she did not attack her classmate.

Kenosha state Rep. Peter Barca announced Thursday that he will give up his post as the Democratic minority leader of the Assembly.

In a statement, Barca said:

This afternoon I made the very difficult decision to step down as leader of the Assembly Democrats following deliberate, thoughtful discussions. I am grateful to my colleagues for their support over the last seven years.

The concerted push for open housing in Milwaukee began 50 years ago this week. Demonstrators marched for 200 consecutive days, trying to convince the Common Council to pass a fair housing ordinance. The NAACP Youth Council played a major role in the movement. Journalism students at Marquette University interviewed a number of them this year, and shared their stories with WUWM.

Should Wisconsin be the only state making a major investment in the proposed Foxconn factory? Wisconsin U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson asked that question on Tuesday at a Rotary Club appearance in Milwaukee.

The Republican businessman says the huge plant in far southeastern Wisconsin likely would provide jobs for many Illinois residents. As a result, Johnson suggested that perhaps Illinois should share the burden that Gov. Scott Walker wants Wisconsin to take on in order to ensure Foxconn build its plant here.

The political maps the state's Republican lawmakers drew in 2011 are headed to the nation's highest court. The U.S. Supreme Court announced Monday that it will consider Wisconsin's redistricting lawsuit.

At the heart of the legal challenge is whether the new Assembly boundaries that Republicans shaped create districts that are too partisan. Democrats accuse republicans of gerrymandering -- drawing the lines in such a manner that makes it nearly impossible for Democrats to win.